The Duke Project on Law & Markets

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The relationship between law and markets is central to understanding the nature and practical impact of law—whether in evaluating the economic impact of legal rules, the degree to which those rules are themselves shaped by economic forces, or the ways in which the two operate independently.

The Law and Markets project seeks to engage foundational questions concerning the intersection of law and markets.  For example:

  • What are (or should be) the limits of markets?
  • When and, through what mechanisms, should the law restrict the free exchange of goods and services?
  • To what extent, and how, should the legal system address market-driven inequalities in income, wealth, or access to goods and services (such as health care and education, among others)?

The Law and Markets Project will explore these and other questions, with the hope that a broad consideration of these topics yields insights about the relationship between law and the market. Building on the success of the Custom and Law initiative two years ago, we seek to engage the relationship between law and markets through publications, presentations, seminars, workshops, and symposia.